1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a contacting device for a chip card and in particular for a SIM (subscriber identity module) card. Chip cards and/or SIM cards are also known as smart cards.
2. Description of Related Art
Contacting devices for chip cards are known in the art. Such contacting devices are also known as chip card readers or smart card readers, or in particular when used with SIM cards, as SIM card readers. With many slide-in approaches for SIM cards such as cards having the ID-000 format for mobile telephones, the SIM card conventionally is inserted or placed in a kind of loose or separate drawer or cover, and the drawer is slid into a slot opening of the contacting device. With this design the separate drawer may get lost. Further, the drawer and the contacting device must comprise some kind of guide means for guiding the drawer in the contacting device, such guide means requiring additional space with respect to height and width. Moreover, ejecting means are necessary to enable withdrawal or removal of the drawer from the contacting device.
For miniaturization, particularly in the field of mobile telephones, it is an object of the present invention to make a contacting device for a SIM card as small as possible. Of particular importance is a small thickness or height of the contacting device. Preferably, a contacting device should be barely larger than the SIM card itself. Furthermore, loose parts should be avoided such that nothing can get lost. The contacting device should be of simple construction and easy to operate. Misalignment or wrong orientation of the SIM card should be avoided.